


Pokéballs Can't Catch Feelings

by Bespectacled_Bunny



Category: Pocket Monsters | Pokemon - All Media Types, Pocket Monsters: Sun & Moon | Pokemon Sun & Moon Versions
Genre: Abusive Parents, Eventual Romance, F/M, Family Drama, Fluffy, Freeform, Implied/Referenced Child Abuse, More characters to be added, Romance, Work In Progress, a little bit on the self-insert side because i can, featuring my personal favorite pokemon
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-11-25
Updated: 2018-11-25
Packaged: 2019-02-06 14:55:03
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 6
Words: 18,846
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12819960
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Bespectacled_Bunny/pseuds/Bespectacled_Bunny
Summary: A young woman moves to Alola to start a new life, bringing only her most cherished  Pokémon with her. Even with four islands to choose from, she ends up moving in right outside Po Town! And thanks to a certain mischevious bug  Pokémon, she happens to catch the eye of a certain gang leader. Will she find happiness, or will she need to start all over again?





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Translations of Hawai'ian Slang:
> 
> haole: foreigner  
> malihini: newcomer  
> lolo: silly, foolish

"You really, really don't want this house..." The real estate worker hesitates, his hand reaching out and trembling slightly. "Po Town used to be a nice place, but recently it's become..."

"Become what?" The trainer asked, eyeing the leafy trees and bushes that overlooked the sea. "This setup is perfect for me and my Pokémon, I don't think I'd ever find anything better."

"Miss, Team Skull has practically taken over this neighborhood! Those thugs steal Pokémon and cause all sorts of trouble, it's not safe for one person to live here alone."

"I don't think one team of hooligans can cause me too much trouble." She smiled. "I'll take it."

The agent gulped. "It's your funeral..."

* * *

 

Later on, after all the paperwork had been signed and payment arranged, the young woman returned to her new home, which still stood empty. She took a well-worn Pokéball from her belt and tossed it into the air, allowing her treasured partner to come forth. Fuego the Typhlosion materialized in a flash of white light, roaring loudly as he observed his new surroundings. "So, what do you think, bud?" The trainer asked, scratching him at the base of his ears. He sniffed the warm air and then took off to explore the property, blue rear end quickly disappearing into some bushes.

The trainer headed inside of the house now, thinking more about how her Pokémon could be comfortable there. There was a high loft, perfect for Zuberi the Crobat to go up and roost in. In the bedroom, next to the people bed was a sunken Pokémon bed, which was going to be fitted with fireproof everything for Fuego. Lastly, a small tree was growing from a pot in the corner, the right size for her Sewaddle, Waddles, to hang out in. Yes, this home was shaping up to be perfect.

She checked the time on her Pokégear, a relic from her life back in Johto. "Oh wow, the moving company will be here any minute!" She popped back outside and took a seat on the front step, watching a flock of Spearow fly through the sky. "What a beautiful place..."

Her reverie was soon interrupted by the sound of approaching feet. Two teenagers in black tank tops were scuffling their way up her front walk, bandanas pulled up over their faces. They made interesting motions with their arms as they moved, almost as if they were dancing. "Yo, check it homie, it's a new neighbor!" The first one announced loudly, still dancing even as he stood still.

"That's whack, we totally cleared this neighborhood out!" Said the second one, eyeing her closely.

"Is that so?" The trainer chuckled a bit. "I'm not planning on moving anytime soon, however. I got this house for an amazing rate!"

"Listen up _haole_ , you're in Team Skull territory now! We the baddest of the bad and we take what we want!" Teenager A approached her further. "Like now, we'll be taking your Pokémon."

She gasped. "My Pokémon? Shucks, looks like you just missed him. He should be somewhere around here, if you look hard enough..."

"We ain't playin around, lady! Call your Pokémon already!" The second teen pulled a ball from his pocket, grasping it tightly before bowing his arms outwards and squatting down, almost like he was trying to mimic a skull with his body.

"Okay, but don't say I didn't warn you..." With a deep breath, the trainer brings two fingers to her mouth and lets out a shrill whistle. From the bushes, just out of sight, a creature let out a vicious snarl. Then, the sound of roaring flames got closer and closer to the three humans, and a great wheel of fire burst forth, heading straight for the Team Skull grunts! The two teens turned tail and ran off, shrieking as the Typhlosion rolled closer to them, eventually chasing them off the property.

"And don't come back!" The trainer shouted after them, hands planted on her hips. Once they were out of sight, she giggled and ran up to her treasured partner, throwing her arms around him. "You did such a good job! Thanks for protecting me." She nuzzled against his coarse fur, feeling the fire-type heat of his body searing her. "Let's go back inside. I brought some Rage candy from back home." The pair smiled at each other, and headed away. 

* * *

 

"Big sis, you won't believe this crazy _malihini_! She just moved in, wasn't scared of us or nothing!" The Grunt cried out, watching as Plumeria fastened her hair into her usual pigtails.

"Well, did you get her Pokémon?" She asked, now rimming her eyes with white shadow.

"That's the worst part! I don't even know what she had, but she just whistled and some Fire-type came outta nowhere, nearly ran us down. We didn't sign up for that!"

Plumeria sighed. "I'll send someone else to bother her tomorrow. Don't let the boss know just yet, he's got too much on his mind as it is. If she keeps being a nuisance, then you get me, okay?"

"Gotcha, sis!" 

* * *

 

Tomorrow came, along with all the packages addressed to Liz, formerly of New Bark Town in Johto. A team of Machamp helped her with the heavy lifting, arranging everything to her liking. Liz herself ended up mostly occupied with keeping Waddles under control, as the baby Bug Pokémon wanted to run beneath everybody's feet and cause all sorts of mischief.

Eventually she just picked him up and tucked him into her shirt, letting his leafy little head poke out at her neck. Now that there was no more risk of tripping, the movers finished unloading all of Liz's things and bid a hasty retreat.

"Such nice teamwork." She hummed to herself, tickling the baby Pokémon's tummy. "And you were being such a silly, yes you were, yes you were~"

Suddenly, her front door flew open with a crash. "Hey _haole_! Don't get too comfortable yo, cuz Team Skull is here to mess you up!" Two different grunts strode into the living room, gesturing wildly at her.

"Hey there, fellas. Come to help your new neighbor unpack?" She winced as Sewaddle's claws pinched at her skin, the baby climbing up and out of her shirt to cuddle on her shoulders.

At that sight, the grunts started snickering. "You got a baby bug crawling all over you! There's no way you can take us!"

Liz let out her own laugh. "Waddles is too little to battle yet! He's just my little snuggle boy~" She coos, giving the baby a nuzzle. "It's my other Pokémon you need to be wary of."

"Like what, a Magikarp or something?"

"Oh, no. If you're actually curious, why don't we step outside and have a real battle?" Now she's grinning. The grunts jump at the chance, racing outside and calling out their Pokémon, a Fomantis and a Yungoos. "Hi cuties!" Liz squeaks in delight, looking at the new Pokémon. "Wow, you look really strong! I hope I stand a chance..."

"There's no way you do! Come on _haole_ , call out your Pokémon!"

"Alright, alright. Zuberi! You're up!" She called loudly back towards the house, and soon her Crobat came flying out. Its sensitive eyes blinked at the bright sunlight a few times before honing in on its new opponents. Quickly, Liz pointed upwards and ordered it to use Air Slash. Zuberi did, using its speed and height advantage to rain harsh blows down upon its opponents. After a few rounds, Liz emerged victorious, though she felt a little sad about having thrashed two young kids. When they went to fish their spare cash from their pockets, she held up her hand to stop them.

“Heck, I wouldn’t feel right taking money from you kids…” She shook her head. “You guys want some Revives?”

“Say what? Team Skull don’t take handouts, lady!” The first grunt cradled his knocked-out Pokémon in his arms.

“There’s a difference between a handout and taking care of your Pokémon! Come on, kids, just take them.” She rummaged through her pockets and found two Revive crystals, using them both upon the foes she had defeated. “Now scoot! I won’t go so easy on you next time.”

“Crazy _haole_!” The teenagers scampered off, disappearing into the walls of their home base.

Liz shrugged at them and headed back into her house. The battle had made her hungry, but her fridge was empty! Looks like she needed to fly into the closest town and find a market. She called Fuego and Waddles into their Pokéballs and asked Zuberi to use Fly, and got swept off to the biggest city on Ula’Ula Island, Malie. 

* * *

 

Upon touchdown, a police officer spotted her and ran over, blasting on his whistle. “Hey! You can’t fly on that Pokémon here!”

“Huh?” Liz hopped off Zuberi’s back and quickly bundled him up into her arms, cradling her giant bat to her chest protectively.

“You can’t just fly around on whatever Pokémon you want! Use the Ride Charizard next time, okay?” He frowned at her, looking sharply at Zuberi. “You must be new to Alola, huh?”

“How’d you guess?” She chuckled a little, calling her Pokémon back into the ball.

“Just a hunch. Get a different ride home, alright?” He headed off.

As Liz was looking about for a market, she felt a twitching in her pocket. She looked down and saw that Waddles’ Pokéball was starting to wiggle around, and before she knew it, the baby had popped out and was running down the street without her. “What—hey!” She exclaimed, chasing after the baby Pokémon. “Waddles, come back here!”

The Sewaddle raced off towards the entrance to a park, obviously entranced by the sight of lush, green leaves to munch on.

“Come back here, you goof!” She comes to a stop at a bridge over a small pond, having lost sight of her precious Pokémon. She scans the immediate area and doesn’t see him, a very bad sign. “Shit.” She cursed under her breath. Only her second day in Alola, and she’s already managed to lose one of her Pokémon.

She wades into the tall grass nearby, trying to look out for any signs of motion. A patch started to shake! She crept closer, closer… She lept forward, arms reaching out to grab her target!

“Ow! What in the heck?!” A rough voice exclaimed, coming from underneath the trainer.

“Huh?” Liz blinked a few times, suddenly realizing that she had just tackled a person, not Waddles. It took her a few more seconds to figure out that she was still sitting on top of this random person. “Oh! Oh jeez, I’m sorry about that!” She quickly scrambled to her feet, grabbing the stranger’s hand and helping pull them back up. “I lost my Sewaddle in here, and he’s just a baby, I can’t find him!”

“And just why should I help some stranger find their Pokémon after they knocked me down, huh?” The man stood up and brushed himself off. He readjusted the yellow sunglasses on his head as he took in the sight of his assailant. “Who are you, anyways?”

“I’m not important right now! I just want to find little Waddles. Please, will you help me?” She bounces nervously from foot to foot, absolutely ready to take off again. “I’ll…pay you or something!”

The white-haired man smirked. “Alright, fine. I guess I’ll help you out.”

“Thanks so much!” Liz smiled widely, a bit of the nervous energy passing out of her system. “He might be in a tree, so make sure to look up!” With that, she practically ran off, spotting a rustling branch in a nearby tree. She grabbed hold of the lowest branch and tried to pull herself upwards, ferociously kicking her feet to propel her. Unfortunately, her crazy flailing only managed to get her flipped upside down over the tree branch, shirt flopping over her face for a second before she lost her grip and fell.

The white-haired man watched this whole charade before letting out a raucous bout of laughter, pointing at her. “You can’t even climb a tree, you loser!”

“Ow…” Liz winced, feeling hot tears starting to prickle at the corners of her eyes. “That was bad…”

“Your Sewaddle’s not up there.” The other trainer said flatly, eyeing the rustling branches.

“Damn!” She cursed at herself for her rash action. “He loves these kinds of trees. Where the hell did he go?”

He walked over and pulled Liz to her feet by the back of her shirt. “You’re lucky you look cute when you’re pathetic. And you’re damn lucky that ya boy here knows bug Pokémon like the back of his hand!” He flipped his sunglasses down over his eyes, scanning the park. “If I were a bug Pokémon…I’d be…over there!” He points at a willow tree, growing on a little island in a pond. “He’s probably chewing on the bark over there.”

“Then let’s go!” She exclaimed, grabbing him by the wrist and pulling him along. In her haste, she didn’t notice how his eyes widened at her, or how he shrugged and got his hoodie’s sleeves to roll down, covering matching purple tattoos. With his free hand, he tucked his gold necklace down underneath his white shirt, shivering as the cold S-shaped pendant pressed against his skin. Liz dragged him to the edge of the pond before letting go, stopping now to take off her shoes and prepare to wade through the water.

“Waddles, are you over there?” She called out, noticing that the tree was wiggling. A tiny green head soon poked out, and there he was! “Found you!” She jumped into the knee-high water and trudged over, managing to properly climb the tree this time. She disappeared into the foliage, and the white-haired trainer back on the shore could only watch and listen as she struggled to reach her Pokémon. Soon enough, she dropped down, landing hard on her rear end with a struggling Sewaddle clutched in her arms.

“You got him?” He asked, extending a hand to help pull her back over to the shore once she approached.

“Yes!” She grinned widely, nuzzling her nose against Waddles’. “I got so scared when you ran away, you silly little baby! Don’t do that again!” She cooed to him, letting him perch on her shoulders. “But I never would have found you without—“ She froze. “I’m so sorry, I never asked for your name…”

“The name’s Guzma, and don’t you forget it!” He stated, a hint of pride seeping into his voice.

“Well then, thank you so much for all your help, Guzma. My name’s Liz, and I believe I owe you lunch.” 

* * *

The two trainers walked together to a small café in the city, with Liz doing most of the talking. Guzma seemed to skulk behind her a bit, nervously looking at the other people on the streets. A few regarded him with disdain, causing him to hunch his shoulders and look down.

“Are you okay?” Liz asked quietly, slowing down in order to walk side by side with him.

“I got a rep in these parts.” He huffs. “Just get me lunch and let’s be done with it.”

“Okay…” She decided not to pry. She just opened the door, allowing him to walk in first. He slumped into a seat in the darkest corner, pulling his collar up a bit to try and hide his face. He squinted at the menu, not meeting Liz’s eyes when she sat down across from him.

Waddles, however, was having no part of his moping. The Sewaddle crawled across the table to the man, squeezing between his face and the menu, and being a generally adorable nuisance. Eventually, he managed to crack a bit of a smile, reaching out to softly rub the baby Pokémon’s head.

“Why you gotta be so cute all the time, huh?” He sighed, giving him a scratch right behind the leaf he wore on his head. “You’re lucky, because if you weren’t adorable, you’d get your trainer into all sorts of trouble.”

“Don’t I know it!” She chuckled, reaching out to scratch the Pokémon’s tail end. “He hatched as I was travelling here, believe it or not. Caused quite a stir on the ferry!”

“So, you uh...like bugs?” Guzma pulled his hand away, anxiously reaching into his pocket to rub his hands over his Pokéballs.

“I like most bugs, but Beedrill can buzz off.” She shivers, remembering the time an angry swarm of them chased her through the Ilex Forest. “Baby bugs are definitely the best, because they’re so little and snuggly.” Her stomach started growling, so she looked up at the counter, squinting through her glasses to try and read the specials. “Here, I’ll go get us something to eat. Do you know what you want?”

“Jus’...gemme a Tapu Cocoa, and whatever you wanna eat.” He sank further back into his seat, watching as the woman got up and walked off, leaving Waddles still sitting on the table. He breathed deeply, brushing his hands through his fluffy hair. After a few seconds, he clenched up. “What’s wrong with you, Guzma?!” He hissed at himself, staring down at the table in disbelief. He yanked hard at his hair. What _was_ he doing here? For Arceus’s sake, he’s the boss of Team Skull, and yet he got dragged into helping some stranger find her lost Pokémon, like a damn police officer. He didn’t have to deal with this! In fact, he was on the verge of getting up and walking away when Liz came back, holding two mugs in one hand and a tray of various sandwiches and sweets in the other.

“I didn’t know what you like, so I got a little bit of everything! I hope that’s okay.” She got the food down on the table, pushing the mug of Tapu Cocoa towards the white-haired man. “Your cocoa smells really good, it almost makes me regret getting the Roserade Tea. Ow, hot!” She had taken a tiny sip and burned her tongue. She hurriedly began blowing on her hot tea to cool it down. “I’m such a wimp…”

“It suits you.” He commented off-hand, taking a deep sip of his cocoa.

She blinked. “What?”

“What?”

“N-Never mind.” She quickly looked away, snatching up a sandwich and taking a few bites to distract herself. It had Tamato berry sauce in it, which she hated, but she kept eating so as to not lose face. She swallowed and winced, washing it all down with another sip of her tea.

“Whatever.” Guzma shrugged, blindly taking a pastry for himself. “So, you live around here or something?”

“Yeah, I just moved here. I came to town to go to the market--the market!” She nearly jumped out of her seat. “Shoot, that’s why I even flew here in the first place! I needed to buy food, but then Waddles got away, and I accidentally tackled you, which I’m really sorry about by the way, and I should probably go so I can get there before they close!” She stood up and turned to dash out before turning back to Guzma. “It was really nice meeting you!” She rummaged around in her pocket to find a pen, scribbling something down on a paper napkin. “Here’s my Pokégear number, I know I’m old school. But Waddles really likes you, and I’d hope that you guys would get the chance to hang out again. Come on, baby buggy.” She held out her arm and the little one climbed up on her. “Bye!”

Guzma was left behind in a bit of a daze as he watched the young woman run off, practically skidding as she rounded a corner. “That’s either the craziest trainer ever, or I’m losing my touch.” He glanced at the napkin she had left with her number on it. He was severely tempted to just leave it behind, because the leader of Team Skull didn’t need to get involved with some woman. She’d definitely be no end of trouble. But, against his better judgement, he grabbed the napkin and slipped it into his pocket, wrapping it around Golisopod’s ball. Just for reference, of course. He quickly pocketed the rest of the snacks she had bought and started walking home, knowing that the Grunts would appreciate something fresh. 

* * *

 

Liz hopped a bus home, her arms laden with bags of fresh produce. Zuberi and Fuego were helping as well, each had the handles of a bag clamped in their jaws. Waddles was taking a nap, curled around her neck like a scarf. “What a good day!” She smiled, nuzzling her cheek against the baby Pokémon. “We got supplies, and I met somebody new.” She thought back to Guzma’s expression as he played with her Sewaddle. Even though his eyes were darkened by shadow and lack of sleep, he looked so warm when regarding the baby Pokemon…

She snapped out of her thoughts, cheeks starting to blush red. No, she didn’t want to see somebody looking at her with warm, caring eyes… She shook her head swiftly, trying to clear out the thoughts and old memories. She didn’t need those anymore, because she didn’t want to go back to that situation anytime soon.

The bus eventually stopped, a few kilometers from her house. “This is as far as I’ll go, I’m tired of dealing with Team Skull. You know they all but rule this area, don’t you?” The driver wrinkled her nose. “Seriously, you _lolo_ or something, moving over here?”

“Nah… Just needed a fresh start.” She stands up, lifting her bags into her arms. “Thanks for the ride. _Alola!”_ She hopped off the vehicle, followed by her Pokémon. They started on the long walk home, absentmindedly looking up towards the sky. She nearly walked past their new house once they got there, and it took Zuberi perching on top of her head to make her stop and head inside.

“Eh?” She once again forced herself out of her reverie. “Thanks, Zoobs. I’m a space case without you.” She headed inside and started putting away the groceries, still lost to herself. Liz didn’t even fully focus her eyes on what she was doing, instead allowing her vision to cross and uncross as she thought. Her Pokégear started ringing a few minutes later, chirruping brightly. She pulled it from her pocket and looked at the number upon the screen. She had hoped to never see that number again, but there it was, plain as the nose on a Nosepass. “Oh no...not you!” She scowled at the device, slamming her thumb down on the ignore call button. She didn’t want to deal with that person.

Fuego approached his trainer, leaning heavily upon her back. He made a rough purring noise in the depth of his chest, picking up on the human’s emotions. The Typhlosion had been with her ever since he was a tiny Cyndaquil, given to an eleven-year old at the very beginning of their journey to become a trainer. Every victory, every defeat, every single challenge she faced, he was there. He knew the bad memories that the caller brought up. He wrapped his short forelegs around his trainer, cuddling with her. “Lo…” He muttered, prompting Zuberi and Waddles to crawl over and grab onto her legs, adding to the snuggle.

“Thanks, you guys.” She smiled, closing her eyes and focusing on the feeling of their heartbeats. “This jerk just doesn’t know when to leave me alone.” She grabbed her Pokégear and flipped its switch, turning it off. “I’m done with listening to what they have to say.” The device got shoved back into her pocket. “So, who wants dinner?” 

* * *

 

A half-hour later, she had a big pot of soup simmering on the stovetop. It was full of fragrant herbs and starchy vegetables, with a few splashes of Slowpoke tail-flavored bouillon to help it along. Fuego was pacing anxiously back and forth, eyes firmly trained on the little flame keeping it all warm.

“It’s not going to cook faster if you stare at it…” Liz reminds him. The fire-type took a deep breath and his trainer instinctively dove for the fire extinguisher. He blasted out with Flamethrower, she sprayed him with foam, and the entire house filled with thick smoke. Coughing, she called all her Pokémon back into their balls and crawled out of the house, flopping down on the front lawn and watching smoke billowing from the windows.

“Dammit!” She groaned. “Thank Arceus the stove didn’t catch fire…”

“Yo, _haole_! You ready for your daily dose of--yo, what the shit?!” Two Team Skull grunts were heading up her front path, and they froze when they realized her house looked like it had an infestation of Torkoal.

“Oh boy.” Liz tilted her head back, looking at them upside down. “Sup.”

“What did you do?” The closest grunt exclaimed, her pink eyes widening in alarm.

“Never let a fire-type get too hungry…” A deep sigh echoed from her chest, followed by a growl from her stomach.  “Whoops…”

The second grunt looked around. “You, uh...you got anywhere you can go? Get something to eat?”

Liz rolled onto her stomach and slowly stood up. “No… I don’t even think I have any neighbors, except for all of you guys.”

The grunts grabbed onto each other and ran off out of earshot, hurriedly whispering among themselves while Liz stood in suspense. They then quickly marched back, striking a pose in front of her. “Okay! Listen, if you give us, say, P200, we’ll go and get you some food!”

“It’s not exactly like I have that much of a choice in the matter…” She nodded, opening up her wallet and pulling out the money. “Are you guys actually gonna help me, though…?”

“Listen, _malihini_ , we may be Team Skull, but if you pay us good, we’ll getcha stuff.” The female grunt took the bills into her hand, almost stroking them with glee before stuffing them into the black garter she wore around her right leg. “Stay put, and we’ll come back with whatever we can scrounge up.”

Liz nodded and watched the two teenagers run off, before calling Zuberi out of his ball. The Crobat began flapping his wings, pushing gusts of air into the house to help force more of the smoke out. The trainer pulled her shirt up over her mouth and ventured back in to open up windows. She coughed as things cleared up, examining the ruins of their dinner. The stove was still on, with the charred remains of the vegetables stuck to the bottom of the pot. She turned off the heat and carefully maneuvered the pot into the sink, turning the water on high. Steam billowed out and fogged her glasses over, and she pushed them up onto the top of her head to escape the blinding cover.

“I swear,” she stumbled back out of the house, “Fuego stays _in_ the ball until dinner from now on!” 

* * *

 

The two Grunts made their way back to Po Town, slipping through the gate and heading to the dilapidated mansion they called home. They trudged into the kitchen, damp sneakers kicked off at the door. “Do we got any food we can take?”

“Boss brought some cookies home earlier, but they’re almost gone.” A different Grunt was leaning against a counter. “You can go ask him if any are left over.”

“Where’d he get cookies?!” The pink-haired grunt gasped in surprise. “We’re all broke!”

“I got no clue, but at least they’re fresh this time. I’m tired of having stale malasadas we grabbed from the trash.”

The two grunts left the kitchen and climbed up the large staircase in the middle of the mansion, clambering their way over the smashed chandelier. They whacked on Guzma’s door and headed in, seeing the bag had been ripped open and a few of the pastries spilled on the floor. Golisopod was out of its ball, and it had a sour malasada clutched between two of its larger appendages, munching on the oddly-flavored pastry.

“Hey boss!” The boy grunt cautiously took a step forth. “You got some real food! How’d you pull that off?”

“It was a gift.” Guzma shrugged his shoulders, lying down in the middle of his giant bed.

“No way, you got a present?!” The girl grunt ran over, scooping the fallen pastries into her arms. “And you didn’t have to scare them into it?”

“Nah, she got them for me as a reward.” He keeps staring at the ceiling. “Left ‘em with me too. I honestly don’t think she even realized who I was.”

The boy grunt’s eyes widened. “You’re kidding me. Somebody didn’t recognize big bad Guzma?”

Their boss shrugged. “I think she just moved here. Whatever, she didn’t do anything. But we can probably catch that Sewaddle of hers if it ever wanders off again.”

A little lightbulb went off inside each grunt’s head. A newcomer to the area, who wasn’t afraid of Team Skull, _and_ who had a Sewaddle?

“Uh, boss… you _do_ realize she just moved next door to us, right?”

Suddenly, Guzma rolled out of bed with a loud crash. “Wait, what?!”

“Yeah! That’s why we wanted the pastries, her Pokémon ruined her dinner and nearly burned her house down, and when we came by for her daily beating, she actually paid us to get her something to eat!” The male grunt laughed.

Guzma grumbled, hauling himself to his feet. “Alright you two...you guys’s names are…” he paused for one second to remember “Koa and Puanani, right?” The blue-haired and pink-haired grunts nodded respectively. “Take her the stuff, but don’t tell her that I gave it to you, alright? I kinda feel like we may be able to use her to our advantage.” He stroked Golisopod on the head, receiving a soft chuffing noise as thanks. “She’s a ditz, and if I get close enough to her, she’ll do whatever we want!”

Koa cheered. “That’s our boss! Dang, you’re so clever.”

“Yeah, that’s our boss for ya. Can we take her Pokémon some beans as well?” Puanani grabbed the remaining food.

“Do whatever, we’ll have her in our pocket soon enough.” Guzma smirked now, fishing a paper napkin out of his pocket. “Ya boy already got her number!” The grunts let out a cheer at this news, including a couple whistles, implying that the boss was good with the ladies. “Go spread the news around the base, tell everybody to leave this _malihini_ alone while ya boy works his magic.” He popped up his collar. “Get goin’!"

“Yes boss!”

 


	2. Chapter 2

After an hour had passed, Liz was still waiting for her food to arrive. She had been sitting on her front stairs the entire time, holding Waddles in her arms and playing with his leafy clothes. “You’re such a cute little baby… I'm sorry dinner is taking so long. And because I paid those kids, I'm all but out of money…”  The baby Pokémon, ignorant to her plight, simply decided to snuggle up under her chin, nibbling on the collar of her shirt. “Oh, come on…that’s not food and you know it…” She scratched him under the chin, making him chirrup in enjoyment. The sun beat down on them as they waited, causing Liz to start sweating. “How do people deal with living somewhere so hot?” She muttered to herself, wiping her forehead with her sleeve. “I shouldn’t have released my Dewgong…”

“You released a rare Pokémon like that? You _lolo_!” Koa and Puanani had overheard her on their way up to her front steps.

“Plus, you’re wearing all heavy clothes. Did someone forget to tell you this is a tropical island?” Puanani gave the other trainer a judgmental stare, observing her long pants and jacket.

“I don’t want to wear anything else.” Liz said defensively, huddling into the fabric. Waddles took this as an opportunity to crawl up over her face and onto the top of her head, making angry baby noises at the pink-haired teen.

“Okay, whatever! We brought you that food like we promised, so don’t get all mad about it.” She grabbed the crumpled paper bag out of Koa’s hands, throwing it at the Johtonian. Crumbs and old jelly splattered all over her lap, making a mess.

“Wow, seems like someone needs a reminder on manners.” Liz frowned, brushing herself off and placing Waddles on the ground before she stood up. “Don’t make me ask for my money back.”

“Or what, _haole?_ Gonna sweat at us?”

“Puanani, chill out already. She literally paid us for this stuff.” Koa inserted himself between the two women. “Don’t be a shit about it.”

“Ugh! You’re lucky you don’t even look like you have anything valuable, so I won’t beat you up and rob you blind. Consider yourself warned.” The pink-haired grunt stormed off in a huff. Her companion shrugged in apology before chasing after her, leaving the blonde alone once again.

“Freaking teenagers.” She huffed. “I didn’t earn eight badges just to get pastries thrown at me.”

“I was about to ask if those punks were bothering you, but it looks like you’ve got it under control.” The sound of sandals slapping against the ground alerted Liz to a new visitor. A grizzled, graying man stood on her front walk, a tarnished badge clipped to his lapel. “Nicely done.”

“Team Skull delivery people leave something to be desired. So, uh…how can I help you, officer?”

“Just call me Nanu. Never much liked ‘officer’.” He headed right over to Waddles, scrutinizing the baby. “This your only Pokémon?”

“No, I have more.” She shifted her jacket, showing the other two Pokéballs on her belt.

“Good, because living here with just a baby Pokémon is a death sentence.” Nanu picked Waddles up. “You’re no Meowth, but I guess you’re cute in your own way.” The Sewaddle squealed at him, little round feet flailing in the air. “By the way, kid, you got a phone? Police station’s number is 80295. Call it in case those numbskulls ever give you trouble you can’t handle.”

“Thank you, Mr. Nanu, but I have the feeling I’ll be alright. I can make them do what I want by giving them pocket change.”

“And how long is that going to work for you? How long until they want something you can’t afford?” The older man sighed. “I’ve seen kids like you come here before. They’re running away from something, and they want to start a better life. Moving to the ass-end of some island you don’t know isn’t always the best course of action.”

“Perhaps, but it’s the only course I’ve got right now.” Liz frowned. “I’ve been through enough shit to know what I can and can’t handle.” She came forth to retrieve her Pokémon from the officer’s hands. “Besides, I defeated every gym in Johto. I can deal with some teenagers.”

“Yeah, well, it’s not the teenagers you should be concerned with.” He shrugged at her, stuffing his hands deep into his pockets. “Team Skull’s leaders aren’t necessarily the lenient sort. But, you’ll see soon enough.” He turned and trudged back down the front walk.

“Well, that wasn’t cryptic at all.” She frowned, heading back into her house to eat. 

* * *

 

“Guzma, why are you cutting the sleeves off that shirt?”

“I’m not, Plums. I’m cutting the shirt off these sleeves.” Guzma grinned, tossing the shirt torso to the side. “I’m entering stealth mode.”

“For that girl you met?” Plumeria groaned, picking the shirt up off the floor. “You could have at least used a seam ripper or something, these look terrible.”

“Shut up, it’s a style.” He slipped the cloth over his forearms, hiding the tattoos there. “And shut up about the girl!”

“You like her.”

“Ugh, no! The big, bad Guzma doesn’t _like_ people.” He frowned, slipping off his gold chain and placing it around Golisopod’s neck for safe keeping.

“Guz, you’re going incognito for her. It’s a little obvious.”

“To be fair, you haven’t seen her butt.” He smirked, replacing his normal yellow sunglasses with different shades. “I’m gonna take her surfing.”

Plumeria sighed, watching him wipe off his old eyeshadow with the back of his hands. “Are you kidding me? How exactly is this getting us anywhere?”

He shook his head at her in exasperation. “What part of the plan did you miss out on? I’m gonna cozy on up to her and use her for everything she’s worth. And who knows, I may even get some tail out of the deal.” He smirked and wiggled his eyebrows, causing the admin to gag at him.

“You’re disgusting.”

“Yeah? Tell me something I don’t know.” Guzma laughed grabbing his phone and the napkin with Liz’s number on it. He dialed, and she picked up. “Hey, Liz, this is Guzma, from the garden a while ago. You free today? …Yeah, cool, cool. I was wondering—you ever go surfing before? …No way! Alright, meet me at the beach outside Malie, in an hour. Bring your bathing suit.” He smirked as he hung up. “And that’s how you get a date.”

“Whatever…just don’t screw it up, okay?” Plumeria left Guzma’s room.

He called after her, “Have some faith in ya boy!”

“Never!”

This made him laugh, and he headed for the beach.

* * *

 The blonde trainer arrived at the surf spot, nervously pulling at the sleeves of her rashguard top, making sure to keep her arms covered. Her toes buried themselves in the hot sand, slowly cooking as she worked her way through. Guzma was sitting on a towel with two boards next to him, one painted like a Sharpedo on his lap as he rubbed it with a block of wax. Liz’s cheeks flushed at the sight of him wearing a tank top and shorts, eyes drawn to the shape of his forearms under the black warmers. “H-Hey!” She said, stopping a bit in front of him.

“Howzit?” Guzma looked up, grinning at her. “Ready to catch a few waves?”

She dropped her bag down on the sand, looking at the other board. It had a Pyukumuku’s face painted on it, rather adorable. “You know, I’ve only ever surfed on the back of my Pokémon before.” She laughed mildly, grabbing a bottle of sunscreen from her bag and rubbing some into her face. “I don’t know if I have the balance for this sort of thing.”

“You’ll be fine. You can swim.” He stood up and leashed his board to his ankle. “You just paddle out, turn to face the shore, then paddle in as the wave picks you up, and stand up. Easy, right?”

“Sounds that way.” The young woman stalled by her board, not sure if she should ditch her cover-up and just get into the water.

Guzma went ahead but stopped with his feet in the surf. “You coming?”

“Y-Yeah!” With a deep breath, she unbuttoned her jeans, letting the fabric fall into the sand. A pair of men’s board shorts were stuffed under the denim, long enough to cover to her knees. She kicked off the jeans and kept her hands cautiously in front of her hips, like she was trying to hide behind herself. She hesitated for a bit longer, listening to the crashing of the waves and the happy shouts of other surfers, psyching herself up. She had to admit, the idea of cool water was far more appealing than staying out in the sun. She thought to herself, “no more hesitating”, before picking up her board and charging into the water, welcoming the swells around her feet.

Her date was already out past the breakers, sitting upright on his board. He squinted against the strong sunlight as he waved her over, watching her paddle slowly out to his position. “Hurry up, you barney!” He shouted, brash voice carrying over the waves. “And don’t get in anybody’s way!”

Liz floated next to him, sitting up on her board. “I made it.” She smiled at him, hair flattened by seawater. “Now what?”

“Now, you just wait for your turn and a big wave.” Guzma pushed a clump of white hair out of his face, watching the horizon, paying attention to the rise and fall of the water. “There’s gonna be a good one in two.”

“How can you tell?”

“Do this for long enough, eventually you can tell by feeling the water move around you.” He carefully swung his feet, turning his entire board to face the shore. “Don’t fall off your board now.”

Liz blinked a few times. “Fall off?” She suddenly sensed herself moving backwards and tilting upwards. A wave was forming behind her, and before she knew it, she slid off her board and fell into the water. When she surfaced again, Guzma was laughing loudly, pointing out how far she had drifted.

“I told you! You didn’t even take the wave and you fell right off!” He held his sides and kicked his feet, wiggling in mirth. “You looked like a scared Litten!”

She pulled herself back onto her board, sitting on it sideways. His sudden bout of laughter was a little surprising, but she wasn’t going to cause a scene. “Yeah, I guess I looked pretty silly.” She smiled in embarrassment.

“Watch me try it.” When Guzma’s board started drifting slightly backwards, he laid down on his stomach, and started paddling furiously with his arms. When the wave picked him up, he popped up and stood, sliding down the incline. Liz watched him in awe as he moved freely, even managing to get a bit of air. As his white hair shimmered in the sunlight, she found herself staring, unsure if the warmth on her cheeks was a blush or a burn. 

* * *

 

They stayed in the water until the sun started to set, with Liz trying her hardest to figure out the right technique for surfing. She gave up after a bit and just floated happily, trying to stay out of everybody’s way.

When Guzma started complaining about getting pruney fingers, they headed back to shore, dragging their boards through the sand back to where they left their clothes.

“I haven’t done anything fun like this in ages.” The young woman smiled, wrapping a towel around her shoulders. “Thanks for inviting me today.”

Guzma grinned, tossing his shirt on over his wet skin. “You kinda suck at this, but you’re cool enough to hang out with.”

“I only fell off my board three times!” She protested, flashing him a fake pout. “That’s not _too_ bad.”

“Keep trying, maybe someday you’ll figure it out.” He laid back in the sand, arms folded behind his head.

Liz laid down beside him, unable to speak for a little while. Her mind was racing with ideas about what would be appropriate to say. Eventually, she decided to stop trying and just look at the sunset for a bit, letting her heart speak for her. “I’m…I’m glad to have met you.” She confessed, looking over at him.

He kept his gaze fixed on the sky and didn’t outwardly react to her words. “That’s cause you don’t really know me yet.”

“Think that could ever change?”

“Not likely.” He looked away, rolling onto his side, presenting his back.

“…Oh.” The young woman sat up, brushing the sand out of her hair. “Well, if that’s how you want it…” She started gathering her things, pulling her pants back on and stuffing damp feet into her shoes. “Like I said, I had fun today. Thanks again for introducing me to something new.” She stood up, hoisting her bag onto her shoulder. “I’ll…see you around, I guess.” When he didn’t say anything in reply, she sighed, and started trudging through the sand back to the road. She looked back from the grass, just once, to see if he had gotten up or even looked at her.

He hadn’t. She sighed, and began her walk home.

 

 

 

 


	3. Chapter 3

Guzma sat up once Liz was gone, running his hands through his hair. “I fucked that up.” He sighed to himself, frustrated at how that date ended up. He yanked his arm coverings off, sand scraping against his skin. He threw them to the side and clapped his hands down over his tattoos, squeezing them tightly, nails starting to dig into his flesh. “The fuck was I even thinking?” He threw himself backwards onto the ground, the air leaving his lungs with a great huff as he slammed down. “Chalk that up to another stupid plan by Guzma.”

He laid on his back, staring up at the slowly darkening sky until his stomach started growling. Plumeria had probably started cooking dinner, right? Because it was her turn? She was the best chef in the Shady House, despite hating the actual action of cooking. Slowly, Guzma pushed himself back up, leaving everything but his wallet and keys behind him. He didn’t need any of the beach stuff anymore, and he had just stolen the surfboards anyways.

He began his long trek back to Po Town, grateful that the stretch of road he had to take was mostly deserted. No one would be out and about at this time, especially not so close to his own turf. He passed the police station and casually glanced inside, seeing Nanu’s head bobbing about as he prepared dinner for his herd of Meowth. He looked like some sort of flustered housewife with a bunch of kids, making the gang boss snicker. Continuing on, he practically sprinted through the Ula’Ula Meadow, hand clamped over his mouth and trying not to breathe in any of the pollen. The damn place always gave him sneezing fits.

On the other side of the meadow, he came to a stop and leaned forward, panting heavily. Getting through that place was the _worst._ When he caught his breath, he looked up, noticing that the only house on the route that was still standing had lights on inside. He rubbed his eyes in disbelief; he and the grunts had scared away everybody who lived on this stretch! Whichever dumbass had moved here was in for a rude awakening. He stomped up to the front porch and peered in through the window. No one was in the front room, so he jiggled the knob. The front door swung open and he strode in, inhaling deeply to shout out his entrance.

Before he could get a word out, he heard a startled scream coming from deeper in the house. It sounded like a girl was in trouble! Guzma hesitated for a second, but knew that he needed to confront the inhabitant anyways. He charged further in, quickly placing the source of the scream at the bathroom. He slammed the door open with a great cry, knocking the startled resident down onto the floor.

“What the fuck?” Guzma took the scene in, at a loss for further words. Liz was on the ground, rubbing her head from where she bumped it on the wall. The shower curtain was drawn back and the water was running, dousing a particularly unamused Pyukumuku. “The fuck’s all this?”

Liz didn’t answer for a moment, still nursing the bump on her head. “I nearly stepped on him…” She choked out, tears stinging the corners of her eyes. “Why is he in my tub?”

The tall man reached into the bathtub, grabbing the little Pokémon and picking it up. “It’s just a Pyukumuku. It’s harmless. You can just chuck it back in the ocean.”

“The only ocean near here is almost down a sheer cliff! I can’t throw him down there!” She pulled herself back up to her feet and took the water-type from his hands. “Besides, I’d feel bad about it…”

“If you don’t chuck it, it’ll just stay here forever.”

“…He’s kinda cute.”

“It’s a girl. See? The back spines are a bit shorter than the front.” He pointed at the magenta spikes protruding from its back.

“Oh! Sorry.” Liz picked the Pokémon up and looked at it from eye level. “She’s really cute… I think I might keep her.” The Pyukumuku seemed to agree with this statement, a tiny hand emerging from the “x” that made up its mouth and smacking the trainer right in the face. “Yeah, I deserved that one.”

Guzma just rolled his eyes at her choice. “It can’t even battle right. Pyukumuku can’t learn offensive moves. So what’s the point? You really should just chuck it.”

The woman cradled the little creature to her chest. “I’m going to share with you something one of the Johto Elite Four told me. She said that it doesn’t matter if a Pokémon is strong or weak. People should try to win with the ones they like. And, I like this one. I’m gonna call her Pickles.”

“You’re crazy.”

“Whatever.” She put Pickles back down into the tub. “So, I gotta ask…why the _hell_ are you in my house?”

He stammered out a response, “I-I was walking past! And I heard a girl scream, so I had to—I had to make sure no one was gonna die or nothin’. What’s it to you?”

“I thought the only people who even lived near here were Team Skull.” She frowned, the pain coming from the back of her head was making it hard to think. “Like, I basically had to fight the realtor to get them to give me this place.”

“It don’t matter.” He grumbled, shoving his hands into his pockets. “At least you ain’t dead.” He took a second to actually look at her now, realizing that she was just in her underwear. “Uh…”

She met his gaze, followed it down to herself, then back to him, then back to her body. She squeaked in alarm and clapped her arms in front of herself, trying to hide. “P-Please don’t look!”

“At what?” Instead of averting his eyes, he just leaned closer. The young woman’s body was covered in dark stretch marks, on every part of her skin that had ever changed. Her forearms and stomach had a series of deep red splotches, drawing attention to strangely wrinkled skin. “Those must have been some nasty burns…”

“I said don’t look!” She grabbed the shower curtain and yanked it forth, quickly stepping behind it. “Please…”

When she darted behind the curtain and looked at him with fear in her eyes, he stepped back into the hallway. “Um…sorry.” He muttered, closing the door behind him.

“Just…wait in the living room until I’m done, ok?”

“Yeah, whatever.” He turned and slunk his way to the couch, kicking off his shoes and flopping down. Girls always took forever in the shower, so he was in for a long wait.

He had just closed his eyes and started to feel relaxed when he heard something rustle behind him. He opened his eyes and looked around without lifting his head, noticing a decorative tree set up near the couch start wiggling. He sat up and turned around, thinking “huh” before something green shot forth and landed in his lap. He let out a startled noise, picking the thing up and examining it. “You scared the shit outta me!”

Waddles wiggled in his grasp, wanting nothing more than to climb on his face. “Wa!” He exclaimed, nubby feet flailing wildly.

“You little dummy, what is it with you and climbing on me?”

“He likes to feel tall.” Liz had reappeared, wearing a traditional cotton robe from Johto. “It makes up for the fact that he doesn’t even weigh three pounds.” She leaned on a doorframe and smiled, squinting slightly to try and see clearly without her glasses.

Guzma scratched the baby Pokemon under his chin, listening to him squeal happily. “Fuckin’ cute baby. You’re lucky you’re cute enough to get away with everything you try to pull.”

“Isn’t he, though?” She walked over to the kitchen, visible from the living room. “I’m gonna make some dinner, do you…want to stick around for some?”

He froze up, having been certain that she would kick him out of her house. “Dinner?”

She nodded. “Yup. Dinner. You know, the food you eat at night?”

“I know what it is!” He snapped, out of habit. She flinched back, eyes going wide like a Deerling in the headlights. The Sewaddle still in his lap looked up at him, and, with a disgruntled squeak, shot a burst of string into his face. “Hey!”

“I-I’m sorry.” The trainer in the kitchen squeaked, looking down at her hands.

Guzma growled to himself, pulling the sticky threads out of his hair. “…Whatever, I’m going home.” He placed the baby Pokemon down on the couch and stuffed his feet back into his shoes before getting up.

“B-Be careful on your way home…some punks live near here, they may…may try to bother you.”

“I’ll be fine.” He was out the door without so much as a goodbye, closing it heavily behind him. 

* * *

 

 Guzma shuffled all the way back to the Shady House, kicking a pebble as he went. It had stopped raining for a little bit, a rare occasion for a town on the windward side of a mountain. The grunts were all taking advantage of the clear sky, eating their dinner outside, wherever they could sit. “Boss is home!” One of them called out when they saw him come through the main door.

“Welcome home boss!” They all called out in unison as he approached.

“Shut the fuck up!” He roared back, his back straightening from its slump.

_“NO!”_ They responded in spades, bringing a wide grin to his face.

“Good on ya, damn punks!”

One of the younger kids ran up to him, holding a plate. “Plumeria made lasagna!”

Guzma took the plate, nodding his thanks. “Team Bonehead is doin’ dishes tonight, anybody who complains is gettin’ a beat down.” His word around here was law, and they all knew it. Satisfied with his orders, he took his serving of dinner inside, storming up the main staircase and carefully picking his way over the ruins of the chandelier. “Is someone gonna pick this shit up eventually?” He called out, hoping at least one grunt was within earshot. When no one responded, he sighed, feeling the glass crunching beneath his feet as he stormed into his room, slamming the door shut behind him.

He threw himself into his chair, slinging his leg over its arm. He mused to himself for a bit while eating his dinner, running over the day’s fuckups in his head. “I can’t fucking believe it.” His hand curled into a fist, and slammed down against the arm of his throne, hitting in the same spot as always. “I was so fuckin’ ready to go this morning, what the fuck did I do?”

Golisopod, who had up until now been napping on the bed, sat up and chirruped at its trainer. It came over and laid its head down on Guzma’s knee, the golden skull pendant still hanging from its neck. He sighed and reached out to pet it just behind its antenna, smiling just a little when it chirruped and ground its mouth-parts with joy.

“Hey bud.” He lifted the necklace and put it around his own neck.  “Did you ever have weird girl trouble? Ah, what am I saying, of course you didn’t. You’re a stud. You’d totally get all the girl Pokemon.” Golisopod just nuzzled his leg, happy to be cuddling with his trainer again. “So what’s your secret, bud? How do you do it?” No answer came that he could understand. Guzma spent the rest of the night sitting up, fists clenching and unclenching as he thought.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It is now my official headcanon that Golisopod will grind its mouth when happy, like a bunny making tooth-purrs. Also, I love perspective changes.


	4. Chapter 4

When a week passed without incident, the gears in Liz’s head started to turn. Guzma hadn’t called, but at the same time she hadn’t had any more visits from Team Skull. Worried that she had irrevocably ruined her possible relationship, she decided to throw herself back into training. She began frequenting the park in Malie, which was always full of people looking for a battle.

“You’ve got some skill!” Her last opponent had told her. “There’s a festival this weekend, and they’re gonna have a Pokémon tournament. You should sign up!”

“A tournament?” Liz mused to herself as the other trainer handed her a flyer. Her eyebrows rose up when she saw what the theme was—a celebration of Kanto and Johto culture. The sight of traditional calligraphy sent a jolt of homesickness straight to her heart, and she made up her mind there to at least try.

When the weekend rolled around, Liz dug through her boxes of older clothes, looking for a specific outfit. She let out a loud “A-ha!” when she found it, pulling out a bundle of folded cloth. It was her festival yukata, from when she still lived in Johto. The robe was a cerulean blue, with a pattern of Goldeen swimming around the hem and sleeves. The sash was orange and white, the colors swirling around each other and accented by flecks of black like the pattern on a Seaking. A little further scrounging around yielded her traditional sandals, as well as a matching bag perfect for carrying her Pokéballs.

There was something else too, that she wanted—the last gift that her parents gave her before she moved. It was a length of specially twisted red rope, with a buckle hidden by an ornate knot. She took Fuego’s Pokéball and summoned him forth, buckling the collar around his neck. He made a soft clucking noise, reaching over with his nose to nuzzle his trainer.

“I know, buddy. I know.” She said quietly. “I know you don’t like it, but it makes you look real cute.” The Typhlosion snorted, blasting some heat over Liz’s face and making her hair go frizzy. “Hey! Don’t be a jerk.” She stormed off to the bathroom to fix herself up, hearing her Pokémon snickering in the background.

“Don’t laugh at me. Big buttface.” She frowned at him when she came out. “We’re going to be battling a lot and I wanted you to look serious about it!”

“Flooooo.”

“No more mouthing off, mister.” She went over to her dresser and opened up a small case, revealing her gym badges. She pinned them along the front of her collar, four on each side. “Come on, let’s get going.”

* * *

 The bus dropped her off at the edge of the city, and the first thing she heard was the thunder of drums. She couldn’t keep herself from smiling, one hand resting atop Fuego’s head and lovingly petting his ears. “Feels just like home!” She said happily, spying an exciting booth and running forward to see it. Liz dashed from stand to stand like an overexcited child before finding the signup table for the tournament.  She put her name on the list, chest stuck out with pride, displaying her gym badges. The prize for the winner was a full set of evolutionary stones, courtesy of a fancy jewelry store from another island. The stones were displayed on a table behind two Machamp guards, who flexed menacingly at anybody getting too close.

Liz waited around near the ring, munching on some ice cream from a cone shaped like a Magikarp. Two teenagers ran past her and bumped into her from the back, making her drop her cone. It splattered on the ground and she yelled out after them, but they quickly disappeared into the crowd. Maybe she had seen it wrong, but it seemed like the two had been wearing matching hats…

“All contestants to the field, please!” A voice rang out over the crowds. “All contestants to the field!” With a shrug, the trainer headed over, keeping her Typhlosion close. “The rules to the tournament are simple—it will be a bracketed elimination style. The pairings will be chosen randomly by drawing numbers!” An official came forward with a bowl of paper slips, and each trainer took one. Liz’s number was four. “Each battle will be a single Pokémon, to the point of either fainting or withdrawal! The winner will receive the set of evolutionary stones!”

The trainer pairs split up, standing next to each other to the side of the field. Before the battles began, a priest came forward to bless the competition, declaring it an honor to the mainland guardian Pokémon Ho-Oh and Lugia, as well as the island guardian Tapu Bulu. He sprinkled the field with anointed water and salt, calling praises to the sky. Finally, he raised his arms upward and cried out, “Let the battles begin!”

Since her battle was going to be last, Liz didn’t pay close attention to the events on the field. She moved away a bit to ruffle Fuego’s fur, paying attention to him to help him get in the right mindset for an important battle. “I don’t think I’ve been this nervous since we faced the League.” She told him softly, cuddling him close. “You gonna be okay?” The fire-type lovingly nuzzled his trainer, his eyes closed as he stuck his muzzle under her chin. “Yeah, I knew you’d be okay.”

She looked back over at the field now, and gasped in shock at what she saw. The battle had been stopped due to people storming the field, forming a barrier between the opposing Pokémon with their bodies.

“Get off the field, that’s dangerous!” One of the contestants yelled at them.

Liz elbowed her way over to the edge, noticing the white beanies and black tank tops that all those people were wearing. Team Skull grunts had stormed the field, linking their arms together to prevent their removal. They ignored the roaring of the crowd, not even budging until the police arrived. When they approached mounted on Mudsdales, the teenagers scattered, disappearing in all directions into the festival-goers. The police scrambled to try and track them down, but the crush of bodies was too much. They got lost in the crowd.

The tournament announcer found their microphone and turned it back on, a burst of interference hurting everyone’s ears. “Well, now that’s over with, we can—” they paused as someone whispered into their ears. “Ladies and gentlemen.” Their voice was rough. “The prize has been stolen!”

“Those damn punks!” Liz exclaimed. “Come on, Fuego, we’re going home.” She grabbed him by the collar and started guiding him through the traffic, trying to muscle her way back to the bus stop. When she found herself unable to get anywhere, she stopped in her tracks, swapping Fuego out for Zuberi and flying back home on the back of her Crobat.

* * *

From the air, Liz spotted a bunch of white beanies bobbling along on the route back to their base. She frowned deeply and had Zuberi take her lower. “HEY!” She shouted from the sky, dropping down in front of the group. “You punks have a lot of damn nerve!”

The sudden appearance of someone from the sky riding on a giant bat was certainly a shock, and a few of the grunts fell over screaming. “No way! These are ours now!” Yelled one of them from the back.

“No they are not.” She growled, pushing her sleeves up. Zuberi hovered menacingly behind her, fangs glowing purple with poison. “Turn around and bring them back right now.”

“You gonna make us, _haole?”_ The rest of the grunts stood up.

Liz glowered, reaching into her purse to retrieve the rest of her Pokémon. “Yup.” There were only eight grunts. She could do this.

“Stop.” A woman’s voice rang forth from behind the group. The owner stepped forward, pink and yellow pigtails bouncing as she moved. “If you actually think that you can fight all of us at once, you’re wrong.” She had a small package tucked under her arm. “Let us pass before you do something you regret.”

“What are you even trying to accomplish here? Who are you?” She folded her arms and widened her stance, refusing to move.

“My name is Plumeria, and these kids may as well be my little brothers and sisters. They tell me you’ve been a pain in their collective butts, and I just can’t let that stand.” Plumeria gave her ill-gotten bounty to one of the grunts. “You. Me. Battle. Now.”

“You’re on.” Liz retracted Zuberi, swapping him out for Pickles. The Pyukumuku bounced forward, seemingly unphased by the laughter its appearance brought about. Plumeria remained stone-faced, the only giveaway of her opinion was a raised brow. The admin sent forth her Salazzle, which roared loudly upon release.

“Use Dragon Pulse.” Plumeria ordered, crossing her arms in front of her. Her Salazzle agreed, and its maw dropped open, a burst of purple energy spewing forth.

“Bide!” Liz countered, watching her little sea cucumber settle down to take the hit. Her eyes squeezed shut when the blow connected, dirt puffing up from the impact. “It’s okay, sweetie, you’re gonna be fine.”

Plumeria’s brow rose higher. “What are you thinking?”

The blond shrugged. “Take a wild guess.”

“Hrmph.” She frowned, ordering another attack, and then another. Pickles just sat there in the grass and took the hits until she almost glowed red. Suddenly, her innards burst forth from her mouth, forming a fist and slamming down on top of Salazzle’s head. The lizard Pokémon fell down, unable to continue the battle. “What?!”

“You see these?” Liz pointed at the badges on her collar. “I beat every gym in the Johto region. I faced off against their Elite Four. You punks have _nothing_ on me.” She approached the grunts, who started to cower under her glare. “Give me what you stole and I won’t thrash your team like I did hers.”

The grunts turned anxiously to Plumeria, looking for orders. The admin was stoic as she withdrew her Pokémon, and silently handed the bag of stones to the other trainer. “Take them.” She said, unable to look her in the eye.

Liz reached out and snatched the package out of her hand. “Get out of my sight, you thieves. If you bother me again, I will not hesitate to destroy you.” She watched the villainous team skulk off before hopping on Zuberi’s back and heading back to the city.

* * *

Guzma was waiting in the entryway of the Shady House. When he saw that his team returned empty handed, he nearly exploded. “The fuck is this?!” He shouted, grabbing the closest grunt by the collar and slamming them into a wall. “Where the fuck is the loot? Did you dumbasses screw it up?”

“We got loot-jacked, boss!” One of the other grunts exclaimed. “Some bitch jumped us!”

The leader let out a growl, pushing his target harder into the wall. “And you mean to tell me that _eight_ of you couldn’t take out _one_ fucker?” Before they could respond, he roared in fury, tossing that grunt to the side like a ragdoll. “If battling didn’t work, you could have fucking punched her!”

Plumeria stepped in front of Guzma, blocking the grunts off with her body. “We got intercepted by that girl you like.”

He froze up. _“What?”_

“The blond bimbo who moved in near us. The one you took on a date.” She answered, spilling the beans to the entirety of the team. “She took out my Salazzle without breaking a sweat, reclaimed the rocks, and told us to get lost.”

“My room, now!” Guzma escorted the admin up to his room, slamming the door behind him so hard that the entire mansion shook. “Why the fuck did you tell everyone?” He growled, slamming his foot into the doorjamb. “That was supposed to be a secret!”

Plumeria didn’t even flinch when he kicked the wall. “You were keeping it from the team. They need to know who she is.”

The boss turned to her and took a swing. “It was secret for a reason, asshole!”

The woman stepped back, easily dodging his wild movement. “You said yourself, you want to use her for all she’s worth. Those kids can help you.”

Guzma froze up. “What are you talking about?”

Plumeria shook her head at how dense he was being. “She’s a champion-level trainer, so your normal methods of just beating her up won’t work. Think smart for a second!”

“…Keep going.”

“Make it a team-wide mission. Use the grunts to your advantage.” Plumeria started to smirk. “Have them continue to bother her, until you come in at one point and save her. She’ll be grateful, like you said.”

Guzma sat down in his chair, nails picking at the worn spots on the arms. “And what then?”

“First of all, apologize for being an ass to her. _I_ know you’re an unrepentant asshole, but _she_ doesn’t, so try and at least act like you mean it.” She chuckled at her own joke. “From what I’ve seen and what you’ve told me, I have her pegged. Girls like that want someone who listens to them and protects them. Pretend to be normal, and she’ll give you whatever you want.”

The leader steepled his fingers. “You’re saying…what?”

Plumeria shook her head at how he didn’t quite get it. “Be nice. Be nice and you’ll get what you want from her.”

“Be…nice?”

“Yes, Guzma, be nice. You had the idea earlier, what happened to it?” She rubbed her forehead in agitation.

His hands dropped into his lap, and he looked down at them. “Last time I saw her, I scared her.” He said quietly.

Plumeria groaned at how hopeless her boss was. “That’s your thing!”

“No! It was…different?” He groaned and grabbed his hair, yanking at the roots. “I yelled at she looked at me with tears in her eyes. So I got up and left and she told me to be careful on my way home.” He sighed, his head nearly in his own lap. “How am I supposed to deal with someone like that?”

The admin was starting to get frustrated. “Figure it out, genius! I can’t answer all your weird existential questions. Go read a book about it.” She grabbed the doorknob and yanked the door open, needing to put some real power behind it. “If you break this thing I’m not fixing it.” She headed out and grinned as Guzma yelled “fuck you!” at her, hoping that she convinced her boss to start acting normally again.


	5. Chapter 5

Guzma knocked on the door of the little house, a box of Tapu Cocoa powder in his hands. He had taken some time to reflect, and knowing that Plumeria would never steer him wrong, he followed her advice. So, he stood on Liz’s front porch, holding a box of apology cocoa, wondering if she would want to see him again.

He heard something moving inside, and his heart leapt in his chest. Was she going to let him in?

His hopes were dashed when a Typhlosion pawed open the door, flames starting to crackle up from the glands on the back of its neck.

“Uh…hi.” Guzma’s voice was shaking. “Is…is your trainer home?”

Something about the white-haired man didn’t sit right with the fire Pokémon, and he was willing to show it. He breathed in, his ruff burst up, and he _roared._

Guzma screamed in fright and stumbled backwards, tripping over the stairs and falling onto his back on the yard. Fuego burst out onto the porch and roared louder, voice like the grumble of an erupting volcano, fire crackling in his teeth. The man kept screaming, shielding his face with his arms.

_“HEY!”_ A voice cried out over the din, and the loud noise suddenly disappeared, replaced by the sound of a Pokémon being recalled. Liz was standing in the doorway, Pokéball in hand, breathing heavily. “You…!” Her eyes went wide to see who had come calling. “I am _so_ sorry about him. He gets weird about strangers.” She ran out of the house to help Guzma off the ground, brushing some dirt off his back. “I didn’t even realize that he figured out how to open doors, though…”

“Nah, it’s…I get it. He’s gonna keep his trainer safe.” He rubbed his head, not looking her in the eye as he extended his arm and offered her the can of chocolatey goodness. “I…brought you this.”

“Th-Thank you.” She blinked, accepting it.

“It’s an apology. For yelling.” Guzma looked at the path away from her house. “Didn’t mean to scare you or nothin’. I’ll just go now.” He turned and started shuffling away, pausing when he heard her sigh.

“Hey…could you teach me how to make this?”

A smirk flashed across his face. She was hooked. “I’d be happy to.” He strolled into her house, quickly glancing behind him before he closed the door.

“Makin’ cocoa is easy. Even my Golisopod figured it out.” What he didn’t mention was that he only found this out when he walked into the kitchen in the middle of the night and found the Pokémon hunched over the stove. His screams woke the entire house.

 Guzma rummaged through the fridge, pulling out a carton of milk. “Warm milk, two scoops of mix, stir, boom. Tasty shit.” He whipped up the hot drink like he had done it a million times, pouring it into two old mugs that Liz had scrounged from her cabinets. He drank his immediately, thumb running over a chip in the handle. “What’s this even mean, ‘stercoraceous’?”

“I’m...not quite sure how I even got that one.” She muttered, hands wrapped around a mug that just said ‘ragamuffin’. “I like weird coffee mugs.”

“They’re definitely weird.” He watched her blowing on her hot drink, the same way she did when they first met. Dang, she looked cute.

When the silence had hung on long enough, she placed her mostly-full cup down on the counter. “So, are we gonna talk about...” she gestured a few times “all this, or was this just a cocoa break?”

“We don’t have to talk about anything.” He shrugged. He had come here for a reason, right? Why was he blanking on it?

“Listen, Guzma.” She sighed, shaking her head. “I just want to know where we stand, okay?” She frustratedly pushed a clump of hair out of her face. “Like, I thought our date went okay, but I guess it didn’t, because we didn’t talk for like a month after that, and suddenly, you’re here, and it’s like nothing happened. If I said something you didn’t like, if I screwed up, I’m drawing a blank here. I’ve been running things over and over in my head, trying to figure out where I went wrong...” She swallowed, throat tightening with emotion. “You don’t have to pretend to like me, I don’t want to force you into anything. I just...I would really appreciate if you could set me straight on all this?”

Guzma blinked a few times at her sudden outpouring of emotion, at the way her eyes twitched, tears threatening to fall at any time. “It’s...hey, don’t get all snivelly on me.” He said gently, torn between not wanting to deal with someone crying and not wanting  _her_ to cry. “I guess...this is my way of apologizing?”

Liz rubbed her eyes with the back of her wrist. “Huh?”

“I’m not good with words. Seriously, I’m not. I like to show things, when I mean them.” He mimicked her anxious hair-rubbing. “I guess my deal is, I think I like you? As a person?” He screwed up again. He was supposed to say something like, hey I _like-you_ like-you, you’re cute, something that would make her get that endearingly surprised look on her face, the one that made her look like a Meowth caught in the act.

He nervously glanced at her, finding that her cheeks had turned slightly red. “Thank you...” her voice was soft, and she couldn’t meet his eye. “I like you as a person too.”

“Heh.” He let a smile, a genuine smile come to his face. “So, guess it’s only fair that you get to pick our next d-d—” his words were caught on the tip of his tongue. Did he actually want another date with her? Truly, really want it? The longer he looked at her face, the harder it got to separate himself from the situation.

“We...don’t have to call it a ‘date’ per say.” She replied gently. “Would you feel better if we just called it a hangout?”

His entire body relaxed. “Yeah, that sounds good.”

Liz chuckled a little, her cocoa finally cool enough to drink. “Man, right now I’m kinda wishing this happened a day ago...there was a big festival in town, and I...” her eyes flickered away from his. “I had wanted to ask if you would be willing to go with me...”

The festival. The stupid, ruined festival, where this annoyingly cute girl had ruined his plan. “A festival?” He feigned ignorance. “What kind?”

“Oh, Guzma, it was so pretty!” She sighed. “It was a traditional celebration, just like the ones I went to at home. There were drums, I wore my special robes—there was even supposed to be a ceremonial battle!” Her eyes were lit up behind all the sadness. “But that got ruined...”

“How does an entire festival get ruined?” More like, how can one person screw everything up?

Liz frowned at the memory. “Some kids from that Team Skull stole the prizes! I didn’t even get to battle... I had all my badges, heck I even managed to get Fuego to wear his collar! A word of advice, by the way—Typhlosions do not like collars.” She tacked on the last part on a whim, remembering how he had almost burnt her the first time she tried to put it on him.

This one made Guzma chuckle. “Yeah, something tells me that he doesn’t exactly like me all that much either.”

“Fuego? No, he’s just a big baby! A big, overprotective baby...” She sighed. His Pokéball was sitting on the coffee table. “He’s been with me since the start, you know? We’ve been through the best and worst times together.”

“Same with me and my Golisopod. I hatched him from an egg, so we were little wimps together, all growing up.” Guzma smiled, remembering how thrilled he was when he found out Wimpod was a Bug type. “He’s so big now, he nearly takes up my entire bed.”

“I bet he’s real cute.”

“Not cuter than you.” He blurted out, hands freezing for a second as he considered what he said. He was ready to run screaming from the house when the other trainer started smiling, color lightly dusting her cheeks. His heart started pounding from excitement—he actually gave her a compliment! And he meant it!

Liz giggled, instinctively covering her mouth with her hands for a moment. “You’re very sweet.” She told him, taking another drink and peeking up at him over the rim of her mug. She couldn’t keep her heart from pounding.

Guzma opened his mouth to say something else, but a sudden vibration in his pocket made him freeze. He pulled out his phone and looked at the number on screen. “Crap, I gotta take this.” He muttered as he stepped outside into the yard. He hit the green circle and raised the phone to his ear. “Yeah?”

_“Have you had any success in capturing any rare Pokémon?”_ Asked a pompous male voice. _“The director is still interested in that Johto starter Pokémon you mentioned, and she is becoming impatient. She urges you to remember that incompetence will not be tolerated. And also to submit that expense report, and to keep it reasonable this time.”_

“Do the words ‘delicate operation’ mean anything to you suits? I told you, I’m working on it, so get off my back and go play scientist.” He groaned at the idea of calculating everything he needed to keep his team up and running. No one ever mentions the tough parts of starting an evil organization, you know? And it wasn’t exactly like he could just run up and grab a Pokémon nearly as tall as he was. “You’ll get your stuff when I get it to you. Or would you like to find yourself someone else do this job?”

_“That…will not be necessary.”_ A soft scuffling noise betrayed the man rubbing his forehead. _“Just do your job so that I can do mine, understand?”_

“Yeah, yeah, just let me do my thing. You’ll get your dumb papers when you get them.” He hung up and stuffed his phone back into his pocket before heading back inside. “’Sup, I’m back.” He called out. Liz didn’t answer, prompting him to walk deeper into the house and look around. The back door was open, and her Pokéballs were missing. He took a step out and leaned on the doorframe, watching what she was doing. She had her Typhlosion and Crobat out of their balls, and was grooming them with a rubber comb.

She looked up as she let a handful of purple and blue fur float away in the breeze, smiling and then sputtering as the wind turned and blew it all back in her face. “Bleh!”

He chuckled. “Sorry, work thing.”

“It’s okay.” She wiped her face, trying to get the last of the fur off. “So, uh, I don’t think I’ve properly introduced you to the rest of my team.”

“I think I’m already acquainted with the big guy.” He swallowed nervously as Fuego looked his way and blew a puff of smoke from his nostrils.

“I got this.” Liz pushed herself to her feet, gesturing for Guzma to come closer. He approached with caution, wanting to stay outside the range of fire. She leaned in and grabbed his hand. “Fuego, this is Guzma. He’s my friend, so no more trying to cook him. Guzma, this is my partner Fuego.”  She pulled his hand until he could feel the residual heat rising from the Pokémon’s body, and he almost jumped when a warm snout nudged his palm. He let loose a breath he wasn’t sure he was holding and very gently scratched his nose, eliciting a soft grumbling. “See? He’s nice, once he gets to know you.”

“…Heh.” He smiled a bit, before realizing that Liz’s hand was still touching his. He blushed a bit, and turned his head to the side to try and hide it. “He’s not all that bad.”

“And this” she strained, trying to wrap her arms around her Crobat and pick it up, despite its massive size “is Zuberi! Careful, he likes to nibble!” The giant bat-like Pokémon flashed a pair of wicked fangs and crawled forward, dragging his trainer off her feet. He snuck up to Guzma’s free hand and sniffed it carefully, trying to catch him off-guard and lick his fingers. “Hey! No!” She scolded, wrapping her arms tighter around his midsection and trying to pull herself back up. “Naughty bat!” She made a sharp clicking sound with her tongue and the Pokémon pulled away, sulking back to his spot and leaving her on her stomach in the grass. “He keeps trying to drink people blood, even when I get his favorite type special ordered from the butcher…”

The man chuckled. “Nah, it’s alright. My sister has a Crobat too, and she forgets sometimes that she’s not a Zubat anymore and tries to roost in weird places.” Like his closet. Or a hole in the roof. Or upside down on the ceiling directly above his bed.

Liz laughed heartily. “Yeah, Zoobs roosts in weird places too!” She rolled onto her back, and let out a loud groan when Fuego decided to use her stomach as a pillow. “Heavy…” She wheezed, adjusting to breathe high in her chest. “Can I meet any of your Pokémon?”

“I didn’t bring any of them with me.” He admitted, sitting down next to her.  Fuego looked at him from the corner of his eye, but after a second looked away and seemed to settle down for a nap.

“Well, next time we hang out, we should have a battle!” She said, turning her head to look up at him. “That way I can meet your whole team.”

Guzma smiled in relief that she had suggested a battle as opposed to dinner or something. He was far better at conveying his feelings through battle than anything else. “I would like that.”

“Then it’s a date.” She grinned. “But not like a date-date, if you’re not into it.”

He shrugged. “If you want to, you can call it a regular date.”

She was barely able to hide her squeak of joy, trying to pass it off as a squeak of pain due to her stomach being slowly squished. “Then it’s a date.” She tried to play it cool, but she was starting to lose feeling in her legs. “…Please help me.”

Guzma only chuckled, and reached over to give her a hand.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Re-edited 9/30 cause I wanted to change some stuff around, no biggie.
> 
> Also, I keep forgetting that Crobat is technically 5'11". Poor Liz is gonna get smooshed one day.


	6. Chapter 6

Liz arrived at the date almost half an hour early, sitting on a bench in Malie Garden and staring nervously at her Pokégear.  When it buzzed with an alert, she nearly shrieked and tossed it into the pond.

“I’m pathetic.” She sighed, shoving it back into her pocket. “I’ve faced the Silver League, this should be nothing.” She stood up and moved over to the edge of the pond. A Magikarp peeked up at her from the water, gills slowly flapping as it stared at her. “Hello there.” The trainer said softly, crouching down. She made a fishy face at it, and laughed when it looked confused. “You’re so cute!” She cooed. “Karp, karp.”

The Magikarp disappeared into the depths when a shadow appeared over it. “Were you actually trying to play with that pathetic thing? How lame!”

Liz groaned and stood up. Two members of Team Skull had singled her out for another round of bullying. “What exactly do you want?”

The first grunt gestured at her a few times. “Big sis Plumeria told us all about how some two-bit trainer from Johto practically dropped out of the sky and thrashed her. So we’re here for a rematch!”

She shook her head at them. “I decimated your boss, what makes you think that you can beat me?”

“This!” The second grunt rushed at her, grabbing at her belt. With quick hands they managed to pop the clasp, yanking it away. “Take a dive, _haole!”_ Their free hand caught her in the chest. She suddenly saw sky and couldn’t breathe. She was in the pond.

She sank down a few feet, trying to fight off the urge to inhale. Her back hit the floor and she let herself float for just a moment. Her lungs were aching. Had to breathe, just a little. Slowly she let her breath out, processing what had just happened.

Those kids had her Pokémon.

_They_   _had her Pokémon._

She couldn't lose them!

She held her glasses to her face with one hand as she pushed off the bottom, rocketing back up to the surface and gasping for air. “What—the _hell?”_ She shouted, paddling to the shore. Someone extended a hand to her. She grabbed at it blindly, accepting the help out of the water. “They—they have my Pokémon!” She rubbed her eyes furiously with the back of her free hand.

“Are you okay?” A familiar voice asked. Liz squinted a bit, realizing that she was still gripping her rescuer’s hand.

“Wait, Guzma?” She suddenly let go, and tried to pull her wet jacket tighter around her.

He nodded. “Hey.” He pulled off his black hoodie and shoved it in her direction. “What happened to you?”

She wrapped the hoodie around her soaked frame. “Some brats from Team Skull tore my belt off and shoved me in the pond!” She exclaimed. She felt naked without it, and as she thought about it, the realization of just where the grunt had put their hands. She froze up, staring blankly ahead of her. “They…”

Guzma cracked his knuckles. “Stay right here. I’m going to teach those punks a lesson.”  He patted her once on the shoulder and then ran out of the park.

* * *

 

He managed to find his underlings by spotting Liz’s belt. The grunts had tossed it away after ripping the Pokéballs off, letting it lie in the street in front of an alley. He picked it up and slung it over his shoulder, dropping back into his pissed off stance.

The thieves squatted towards the back of the alley, gloating over their spoils. One of them picked up a Pokéball and released its resident. “Wait, this is just a Sewaddle! Shit, the boss is gonna kill us if all the Pokémon are useless like this.”

“If I don’t clobber you both for being stupid!” Guzma announced, stamping his foot down. Waddles whimpered in fear, but as soon as the baby Pokémon noticed who had arrived, he let out a cry of relief and scaled the boss’s leg. “Jae. Timmy.” He stepped closer, rage pouring off him. “The _fuck_ are you doing?”

The grunts nearly leapt out of their skins. “Boss!” They shrieked, hands flying open. The Pokéballs clattered onto the pavement. “W-We got em!”

“You are…” Guzma took a big step closer “in _so_ much trouble.” He charged in and grabbed the Pokéballs, clipping them back to the belt before squatting down to get at eye level with his grunts. “I’m gonna list the reasons why I’m pissed at you, and as soon as I’m done, you two are going to _sprint_ home and clean the entire mansion, top to bottom. Got it?”

They shivered in fear but nodded, fearing a beat down.

“Good. Okay, number one—you literally could have killed that chick. Do you know how deep that water is? Do you know if she can swim?” His grimace morphed into a frown at the idea of Liz never coming back to the surface. “Team Skull may be the toughest team around, but we ain’t murderers! I’m not dealing with that nasty shit!” He rubbed the bridge of his nose.

“W-We didn’t mean to actually hurt her…” Jae said softly. “We just wanted to defend big sis…”

“Plums can fight her own battles, she don’t need her little punks startin’ fights they can’t win.” He reached out to playfully drag their hat over their eyes. “And speaking of fights…” His fingers ghosted over the curve of the ball that was the most worn. “You two like grass and bug types, don’t you?”

“Aww, boss, you remembered!” Timmy was practically sniffling in joy.

“Yeah, about that. There’s a Typhlosion in here who freakin’ hates my guts. I’m not sure I could ever beat it. You two dumbasses would be charcoal if you actually tried to battle her.”

The two grunts exchanged a panicked glance. “Boss…you really saved our asses back there.”

“No shit! That girl and that Pokémon have faced the Johto Elite Four. She’d annihilate you losers who can’t even pass your island trials.” Guzma returned Waddles to his ball. “Hey, don’t look so freaked out, you two. Big bad boss is gonna tell you a secret.” He gestured to himself with two fingers, and the grunts scooted closer to hear him whisper. “Listen up. I’m…weirdly proud of you two coming up with your own way to beat her down. But you gotta know, this mission is one that I’m doing special. _Just_ me, got it?” He smirked to himself. “I’m gonna convince her to give me her Pokémon.”

“Boss, that’s incredible!”

“How are you gonna pull it off?”

He grinned wide. “If I can get all your dumb selves to follow me, conning someone who’s lonely and has no friends will be easy as pie!” He flicked his sunglasses over his eyes and stood up. “Remind everybody that this one is mine, alright?”

“Yes, boss!”

“Good.” He stood up and cracked his knuckles. “Now get the fuck outta here before I crack your heads! Scram!” The two grunts scrambled out of the alleyway, laughing about how clever their boss is. He felt pretty good about the whole idea.

* * *

 

Guzma took his time in getting back to the garden. A family with two kids had given his date a towel to wrap herself in, and had graciously given her some lunch to help calm her down.

The mother glanced up when she saw the man in black approaching with the stolen belt. “See, honey? I knew your boyfriend would track down those thieves!”

Both Liz and Guzma flushed deep red at the idea of “boyfriend.” The blonde turned to face him, and the sight of her team made her eyes water. Before he knew it, she had jumped up and wrapped her arms tightly around him, beginning to cry against his chest. “Th-Thank you so much!”

He froze at the sudden display of affection. It was so odd to see someone rush him and not immediately try to hit him. His heart was racing so fast he could feel it in his skull. As the young woman held him and cried, he slowly let some of the tension go, and awkwardly let one of his arms snake around her body. “Uh…it’s okay.” He patted her awkwardly on the back. “I gotcha.”

She hiccuped once before the realization set in. She almost jumped away from him, hands clenching around the towel and pulling it tight around her body. “Um. Thank you. Again.” Liz extended one quivering hand for her belt. Guzma handed it over quickly before tanking his hand back to his body, nervously ruffling his hair.

“Wow, lady! Your boyfriend is a hero!” Said one of the little kids, flashing a gap-toothed grin. “He’s like a Pokémon ranger or somethin’.”

“Aww, you’re sweet.” Liz cleared her throat and tried to stop blushing. She folded up the towel and gave it back to the family, hands fiddling with the buckle of her belt as she wrapped it back around her hips. She waved goodbye to her new friends and accompanied Guzma to a nearby bench. “So, uh…guess that’s one date ruined.” She joked. “I should probably go home and change clothes.”

“Yeah, that’s probably a good idea.” He nodded. “I will admit, I’m kinda bummed we won’t get to battle today. But I get it, this whole thing musta freaked you out.”

“I was on the verge on panicking when that family helped me.” She smiled softly, waving at them. “They delayed their picnic to make sure I was okay.”

Guzma watched as the kids ran through the grass, attracting the attention of a wild Psyduck which chased them around before falling on its stomach. “Sound like nice people.”

“I’ve got a standing invite to dinner at their house whenever I want.” Liz’s gaze dropped to her feet. “Me, a total stranger who got knocked in a pond.”

He was silent for a while, thinking about how his own family life had been terrible. “Wow…I can’t even begin to think about what that’s like.”

“Me neither!” She laughed, but her heart wasn’t in it. It was incredulous and sharp. “I mean, a family dinner? What’s that even supposed to be?”

“Messed up childhood, huh?”

“You can say that again.”

He shrugged. “Eh, me too. I figured out eventually that the family you pick is way better than the kind you’re born into.”

“…I see.” She breathed in deep, held, and then let go. “It’s just been me and my team for a while now. Guess it’s time to make human bonds too.” She smiled at him before standing up. “I should probably go catch a bus. Last time I tried having Zuberi fly me home I got yelled at by a cop.”

Guzma stood up with her, almost reflexively. “Lemme walk you to the stop.” He offered, decidedly not adding on how she looked a bit like a drowned Rattata.

Pink dusted over her cheeks. “You don’t have to if you don’t want to.”

“No, no.” He scratched the back of his head. “I want to.” He actually meant that one.

Liz grinned and subconsciously mimicked him, curling a strand of short, wet hair around her finger. “You’re too nice to me.”

They went to the stop together, and Guzma waited until the bus arrived before saying his goodbyes. Liz was blushing dark red again as the doors hissed open. Just before she got on, she turned around quickly on her toes and reached up, pressing a soft kiss against Guzma’s cheek. She flashed him a smile before bounding onto the bus. “Thank you again! I’ll call you!” She shot over her shoulder before bounding into a seat. Guzma could only wave, half-stunned, as the bus pulled away. 

* * *

 

As the taillights shrunk into the distance, Guzma stood frozen on the sidewalk. What had…just happened?

Someone had shown him affection?

Freely, without expecting anything?

_Huh?_

He moved mindlessly to the bench, sitting down heavily and placing a hand on his cheek where her lips had brushed over his skin. It had felt…really nice. He certainly enjoyed her hug too. He didn’t feel like he had to worry about accidentally breaking her. She was solid. (And, under the earthy pond scent, she smelled pretty nice.)

_Shit._

He texted Plumeria about his feelings emergency before hopping the next bus home.

Back at the mansion, he was pleased to see Jae and Timmy doing what he ordered. They were both on their knees scrubbing at the mud caked around the front door. “Keep up the good work, punks!” He said as he kicked off his wet shoes, dropping them onto one of the clean spots. “Get the crap off these while you’re at it, eh?”

“Boss, don’t be a—“

Timmy slapped his hand over Jae’s mouth. “You got it boss! Anything you say!”

“That’s what I thought I heard.” He ruffled their hats as he hopped over the wet spots, picking his way up the stairs around the chandelier. “And seriously, can one of you idiots move this thing already? I don’t want nobody getting hurt on it!”

He slammed the door to his room shut without listening to the answer he got. Plumeria would be up in a few minutes, and the anxious feelings were still bubbling in his gut. He threw himself down in his throne and twisted sideways, throwing his legs over the side. “The fuck.” He groaned to himself. “I’m fucked.”

Plumeria came in shortly after a curt knock on the door. “What’s the emergency?”

“Plums…I fucked up.” He had put his pendant back on and was playing with the skull emblem. “I fucked up big time.”

“Your date went that badly, huh?” She shut the door behind her and leaned against it.

“It didn’t go at all.” He groaned, stretching himself dramatically out over the arms of his throne.

“What happened?”

“Jae and Timmy threw my date into the fucking pond!” He announced.

Plumeria blinked a few times as she processed. “Well, that explains why you’ve got them scrubbing the carpet.”

“They did it for you, you know. It was some kind of misguided revenge tactic.” His head was hanging upside down, he could feel the blood flowing into it.

She frowned, fiddling with the end of her pigtails. “Why didn’t they just battle normally? Throwing somebody into deep water could have gone really badly.”

“That’s what I told them!” He exclaimed. “I mean, I know I mentioned something about solving problems by punching last time I got super pissed, but—a single punch couldn’t properly hurt someone!” He seethed, flipping his pendant up and down. “Not only did they disobey my direct orders, but they could have...” the words stuck in his throat. “They could have really hurt her.”

Her keen eyes picked up on his change in behavior. “Do you actually _like_ her?”

Guzma shot upright and nearly flailed right out of his chair onto the floor. “What—what do you mean?”

“If just anybody had gotten chucked in a pond, you’d laugh and take their stuff while they’re trying not to drown. You’d even kick them back in once they got out.”

He couldn’t say anything in his own defense. Heat was rising in his cheeks.

“Shit, Guz, you’re blushing!” She called out, jaw almost dropping to her chest. “You like her!”

“Shut up!” He shouted. “I do not!”

“You’re blushing!”

Guzma froze. His eyes were wide, and the blush was shining bright. “…shit.” He whispered.

Plumeria groaned, pushing off the door and coming over to sit on the edge of his bed. “You said you knew what you were doing, that you weren’t gonna get attached.  What happened?”

His hand pressed against his cheek. “She… _kissed_ me.”

The admin flopped back on the bed. “Guz…you didn’t.”

“Shut up, it’s just a crush! Not like I asked for it or nothin’.” He grumbled, pulling up his hood to try and hide his face. “Don’t tell anyone.”

“You know I won’t, but it’s only a matter of time until the grunts figure it out.”

“I can trust them to keep their mouths shut. But Aether _definitely_ can’t know!”

“Then don’t tell them?” She sighed, kicking the edge of the bedframe with her heels. “Can’t you just…I dunno, separate yourself?”

His hands yanked at his hair, tugging it so hard that he nearly ripped it out of his follicles. He didn’t want to. He didn’t want to go about his life without seeing the blonde smile again. He growled in frustration, elbows digging into his knees. “…Get out.” He groaned. He didn’t want to make this difficult decision yet.

Plumeria stood up obediently, knowing too well what would happen if she stuck around. “You’ll have to make a choice eventually.” She slipped out the door and slammed it shut behind her, avoiding the spray of glass from the empty bottle Guzma threw.

* * *

 

Liz, in the meantime, was sitting on the couch in the police station under a pile of Meowths, sipping a cup of instant coffee. She had gone there to report her incident to Officer Nanu, who took one look at her wet clothes and put the kettle on.

“So, tell me again,” the officer grumbled, shoving one of his Pokémon off the keyboard so he could write down her official statement, “how exactly did you end up underwater?”

“I was at the garden, on a date. I saw a cute Magikarp, like, the cutest little fish you’ve ever seen.” She tilted her face away from a curious paw. “Hey, be nice. Sorry—I was at the edge of the water, looking at the cute Magikarp, and all of a sudden I hear these two punks come up from behind me.”

“I’m assuming they were angry over how you defeated their plan from the festival.” Nanu typed out what she said so far.

Liz nodded, taking another sip of her coffee and wincing when she found a gray Meowth hair floating in it. “They wanted some sort of revenge. I thought they were going to battle me, but…” She stared into the dark liquid. “One of them rushed me. They ripped my belt off and shoved me into the water.”

_“Teenagers._ Ugh.” He began to copy that part down, but froze halfway through. “You, uh, weren’t hurt or anything, were you?”

She stopped. “Hurt…?” Just now, as she was sitting in the police station, did the events of the day really set in. “My team…I could have lost my team!” She gasped. She carefully counted the Pokéballs still strapped to her belt. There were four there—Fuego, Zuberi, Pickles, and Waddles. They were all back with her. They were all safe.

Nanu sighed and pushed away from his desk, scooting over towards her in his rolling chair. “Are you only upset because your Pokémon were stolen?”

“If I lost them, I would lose myself…” Her eyes began to sting with tears. Her brain had finally stopped holding back her emotions. “I-If I didn’t get them back…I would have just stayed in that pond… I’m worthless without them.”

The officer stood up, shooing his Pokémon off her lap. “Listen, kid…you gotta lighten up a bit.” He awkwardly stood over her.

She bit the inside of her cheeks to keep from bursting out and crying. “H-Huh?”

“I know I’m just some grumpy old man, but…your Pokémon can’t be the only thing that make your life valuable. You’re the one who makes it worth living.” He stuck his hands in his pockets. “So…don’t get all down on yourself, or whatever.” He noticed the tears starting to stream down the young woman’s face. “Look, I’m gonna go out and have a smoke, leave you alone for a bit. Help yourself to more coffee or one of the Meowths.” He awkwardly shuffled out the front door, fishing a cardboard pack and a lighter from his pocket.

Liz laid down on the couch, letting her tears run their course. A couple of the Meowths decided to crowd around her, one of them coming up and repeatedly batting her in the face. Slowly, she felt her sadness ebbing away. After all, it’s hard to keep crying when a curious cat Pokémon is trying to knock the glasses off your face. She wrapped her arms around it and pulled it close, feeling its whiskers rubbing against her face. “Thank you, little muffin.” She sat up, rubbed her eyes, and headed outside.

Nanu was leaned against the wall, depositing his cigarette butts on the windowsill. When she walked out, he snuffed the embers out against the concrete. “You going home?” He asked.

“Yeah. I’m starting to feel kinda gross.” She chuckled. Her short hair had puffed out, practically standing on end. “I…kinda cried on a Meowth, a little.”

“Eh, they’ll be fine.” He tucked the pack and lighter back into his breast pocket. His hands paused as he remembered something he intended on asking her. “Oh, by the way—how’d you get your Pokémon back, anyways?”

Liz absentmindedly tried to comb her hair back into position. “My date chased the thieves down and got my belt back.”

“Brave of them.” He tilted his head to the side. “Bit stupid, but brave nonetheless. They treat you okay?”

“Oh, he’s nice!” She smiled wide. “We’re still getting to know each other, and sometimes things can get a little tough, but so far I really like him as a person. My Sewaddle likes him too; bug types are his favorite.”

Nanu’s eyebrows raised slightly. “You’re seeing a rough n’ tumble guy who likes bug types, huh?”

She blinked innocently. “Yeah?”

He shook his head. “Eh, it’s nothing.” He turned his gaze up at the sky and mumbled to himself, “Acerola’s gonna be old enough to go on dates soon…”

The young woman overheard him. “Your daughter?”

He nearly spit in alarm. “No! Arceus, no. My niece.”

“I’ll have to stop by next time she’s in the area, I’m sure she’s lovely.” Liz chuckled. “Anyways, thanks again for the coffee and Meowth cuddles. I’d better get home.”

“Alright, be safe.” He turned and sauntered inside the station, not even waving goodbye.

* * *

 

Liz’s Pokégear rang when she got home. It surprised her to find that it was still working, especially after getting submerged. She fished it out of her pocket and answered without even looking at the caller ID. “Hello?”

The voice that rang out of the speaker chilled her to the bone.

_“Finally, you actually answered! We’ve been trying to reach you for weeks!”_

She swallowed, trying to breathe deep and keep her wavering voice from betraying her delicate emotional state. “What do you want, Itaru?”

_“Your mother and I have been worried sick! Nobody knows where you are, your mail is bouncing back to the post office, you never answer the phone—what are you doing?”_

“What, are you actually trying to be like my dad now? What happened to ‘if you fail to defeat the Elite Four, don’t bother coming home?’” She snapped, unable to control her feelings any longer.

_“Layla and I agreed that using a firm hand to guide you would bring about the best results in your upbringing.”_ The man on the other end sighed. _“It seems that we have failed, and that you are still volatile as ever.”_

Liz scuffed her feet against the floor. “Oh, because telling a thirteen-year old that they’re not welcome in your house anymore is the best way to produce a well-adjusted adult?” She could picture the big, traditional house she grew up in, outside of Goldenrod city. He had made her sleep on the porch for the first few nights after she failed her first attempt at the championship, only allowing her inside to lecture her and take things from her bedroom.

_“It’s exactly the type of thing that my parents said to me. When I was younger, they told me that I needed to be successful to get anywhere in this world, and that they weren’t going to hold my hand and walk me through my troubles. I turned out just fine.”_

“Itaru, you treat me like shit, and you should be _honored_  that I didn’t just hang up on you!” She spat into the receiver. “Just say your piece and be done.”

_“Don’t you dare take that tone with me, you ungrateful little brat! Why are you disrespecting your father like this?”_

“If you’re my father then I’m the queen of Kalos.” She started pacing back and forth in her living room.

_“Why are you taking that tone with me? I called you because your mother asked me to. I told her that I don’t want to see my disgrace of a step-daughter who can’t even defeat Champion Lance, when a ten-year old could.”_

“Crystal is a freakishly strong trainer, and it’s not fair of you to compare us.” Liz had met the blue-haired youngster back on her journey. She had also chosen a Cyndaquil for her starter. Lucky kid had even gotten a shiny! “Jasper destroyed my entire team every time we battled.”

_“You are giving me excuses.”_

Liz huffed. “You’re not even a trainer! Why are you still trying to compare me to other people?”

Itaru cleared his throat on the other end of the line. _“Your mother wanted me to pass on the news that she’s found a training group that would be willing to take you under their wing, despite your failures.”_

She froze in place. “Excuse me?”

_“You don’t need me to repeat myself. Your ears work fine.”_

Her throat tightened as she bit back an incredulous gasp. “Are you serious?”

Her stepfather seemed proud of himself. _“I knew you would be pleased with that news.”_

“You’re the one whose ears don’t work, Itaru. I’m not taking mom’s charity, and I’m done dealing with your shit!” She announced. “The stick up your ass may have cost me all my old friends, but that’s fine. If they were weak enough to fall for your manipulative garbage then they weren’t worthy of being my friends.” She got prouder and prouder as her voice got louder. “Tell mom that if she wants to make amends, she can reach out to me herself, and that she’ll have to come to me. I’ve moved, and I’ll tell only her where I’ve gone.”

_“Elizabeth, don’t tell me you’ve done something stupid.”_

A dam had broken inside her. “That’s enough!”

_“I **beg** your pardon?”_

“You don’t get to call me that! That name is for mom, and mom alone!” She was practically shouting now. “And unless you can respect that, don’t bother calling me ever again!”

_“Elizabeth—!”_

She viciously slammed her thumb down on the end call button and threw her Pokégear onto the couch. Tears were spilling from her eyes for the third time that day as the feelings crashed over like waves.

She couldn’t really believe she had just done that. She had wanted to say something like that to her stepfather for years, ever since he broke the façade of trying to parent her to reveal that he looked at her more like an employee.

With trembling hands, she released Fuego and Zuberi. They looked at her with concern when they smelled her tears, and both Pokémon tried to pile on top of her to comfort her.

“I told him off, guys.” She nuzzled into her Typhlosion’s warm fur. “I told him never to talk to me again.” She said the last with a little giggle. “I told him off!” Zuberi chittered in happiness for his trainer and tried to groom her hair, grooved tongue flicking through the strands. “Oh, gross.” She playfully petted his head, but didn’t have the heart to push him away. The trio stayed in their cuddle puddle for the rest of the night, sleeping together like they had so many years ago.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm sorry this one took forever. The phone call sequence was pretty hard to write. I also have to deal with parents who have really high expectations for me. But thank you for sticking around for so long!


End file.
